How Do Your Attitudes Towards Christmas Reflect Your Holiday Spirit?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around participants' attitudes and feelings towards Christmas, exploring themes of holiday spirit, personal traditions, and the significance of the holiday. It includes a range of perspectives on celebration, family interactions, and personal experiences related to Christmas.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants express a strong connection to the spirit of Christmas through family gatherings, while others indicate a lack of interest or participation in traditional celebrations.
  • A participant mentions that they do not exchange gifts or engage in religious practices associated with Christmas, which they feel may categorize them as a "scrooge."
  • Another participant shares their preference for creating memorable experiences for children rather than giving presents, emphasizing the importance of shared activities.
  • Several participants recount personal anecdotes about Christmas decorations and the impact of pets on their holiday traditions, with one noting a significant loss of cherished ornaments.
  • Some express a dislike for Christmas, citing stress and financial burdens, while others prefer Thanksgiving for its simplicity and family focus.
  • There are mixed feelings about the commercialization of Christmas, with some participants enjoying aspects like holiday movies and family games, while others find the holiday's presence annoying or overwhelming.
  • A participant identifies as a "semi-militant Atheist," expressing frustration with the expectations surrounding gift-giving during the holiday.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants exhibit a range of competing views regarding the significance and enjoyment of Christmas, with no clear consensus on whether it is a positive or negative experience. Some appreciate the holiday for family time, while others reject it entirely or find it burdensome.

Contextual Notes

Participants' views are influenced by personal experiences, cultural backgrounds, and individual beliefs, leading to a diverse array of attitudes towards Christmas. The discussion highlights the complexity of holiday traditions and the varying meanings attributed to them.

wolram
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Do you get fully involved with the spirit of xmas, or could,nt you care less?
 
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If the spirit of Christmas is spending time with loved ones then I certainly do embrace that.

However, I do not exchange gifts (mutual agreements) or worship a deity or any of the other things that Christmas is often also associated with. In those cases I might be considered a scrooge.
 
My wife and I spend little attention to this "holiday". We try to do something for the kids, but not presents. Presents are soon forgotten and lost. Get to take the kiddies out for some fun? They will remember that.
 
I give winter solstice gifts, but not christmas.
 
I used to get into all of the decorations, but after the year that my daughter's dog, the JAWS OF DEATH ate my entire collection of ornaments I had been collecting for over 20 years, I just stopped.
 
Evo said:
... ate my entire collection of ornaments ...

Is that even possible?!?
 
AnTiFreeze3 said:
Is that even possible?!?
They were all on the tree, which she knocked over, what didn't break in the fall, she spent the rest of the night finishing off. :cry: They were homemade ornaments my mom made, some she had brought with her from France after WWII, I had started collecting special limited edition ornaments since the birth of each of my children, etc... They all had a meaning and memory attached. I was going to pass them on to my girls when they grew up.

Oh well.
 
Evo said:
They were all on the tree, which she knocked over, what didn't break in the fall, she spent the rest of the night finishing off. :cry: They were homemade ornaments my mom made, some she had brought with her from France after WWII, I had started collecting special limited edition ornaments since the birth of each of my children, etc... They all had a meaning and memory attached. I was going to pass them on to my girls when they grew up.

Oh well.

I was going to send you a present but it would never reach you, it would be destroyed in some natural disaster or some other calamity .
Have a disaster free xmass:biggrin:
 
wolram said:
I was going to send you a present but it would never reach you, it would be destroyed in some natural disaster or some other calamity .
Have a disaster free xmass:biggrin:
Hugs {{{{wolram}}}, it's the thought that counts. Are you spending christmas with your daughter?
 
  • #10
Evo said:
Hugs {{{{wolram}}}, it's the thought that counts. Are you spending christmas with your daughter?

YES i am spending christmas with Kia her hubby and my dad, we are pooling our cash to have
an dinner to remember.
 
  • #11
wolram said:
YES i am spending christmas with Kia her hubby and my dad, we are pooling our cash to have
an dinner to remember.
Aww, that sounds so nice.
 
  • #12
What is christmas?
 
  • #13
I'm not a Christian so I don't celebrate Christmas. I usually go into work on Christmas day just for the overtime.
 
  • #14
HATE Christmas. Too stressful, too much money. Thanksgiving is so much better, and is really what Christmas should be about.
 
  • #15
Xmas has never been been my favorite. I always preferred Thanksgiving because at least I got to visit with cousins, aunts, and uncles. No presents and silliness, just a nice day together.
 
  • #16
The only thing I find fun about xmas is spending time with family playing games, and also it's fun when there are little kids around. I'm not religious at all but I enjoy some of the xmas movies such as It's a Wonderful life, and Christmas Story.


Also my dad was a mall Santa for years, he thought it was the best job ever.
 
  • #17
This year, my wife asked the neighbors' grand-daughters if they would rather have presents or an afternoon with her. They both wanted the afternoon with her. Not a bad choice, since they will both get to go to lunch and a movie, and my wife will make it fun for them.
 
  • #18
turbo said:
This year, my wife asked the neighbors' grand-daughters if they would rather have presents or an afternoon with her. They both wanted the afternoon with her. Not a bad choice, since they will both get to go to lunch and a movie, and my wife will make it fun for them.
Lunch and a movie sounds like rather a nice present!

In response to the original question, Ho, Ho, Ho ... Yes, I am, right down to the singing (well, making a noise anyway) in the congregation whilst my children contribute a rather better sound to the Choir. Tree up, Lights On, Presents Wrapped and Mince Pie / Sherry left out for Santa - there's nothing like a proper bit of Christmas Spirit!
 
  • #19
Evo said:
I used to get into all of the decorations, but after the year that my daughter's dog, the JAWS OF DEATH ate my entire collection of ornaments I had been collecting for over 20 years, I just stopped.

Dear me... :( . Haha, but that happens. Just the other day our dog (basset/beagle) found a paper-mache bird ornament that my sister made when she was young. Bit the things tail off...left the deceased body on the living room floor...just laying there... ;)



Personally I've been getting more anti-christmas over the years. It's primarily a family thing though. Things just seem really stiff. People are upset by not having things play out their way (tradition-wise, not gift-wise), and past ordeals always end up surfacing to some extent. I don't really remember the occasion that well anymore later on since it's something that I repress. As much as I struggle in univ, I am always anxious to return after two weeks break.
 
  • #20
I don't celebrate it, and its mere presence annoys me.
I'm a semi-militant Atheist. There are a few people who still insist upon giving me presents, and I therefore feel obliged to reciprocate. It would be simpler if they'd just stop doing that.
 
  • #21
Long answer:
There are little things I like, that could really happen on any other day of the year and it would be all the same to me. Really dislike the repetitive music and the fervor that goes on.

Short answer: No
 
  • #22
Danger said:
I don't celebrate it, and its mere presence annoys me.
I'm a semi-militant Atheist. There are a few people who still insist upon giving me presents, and I therefore feel obliged to reciprocate. It would be simpler if they'd just stop doing that.

Phew that was close, i just recovered your present from kia taking it down the post, i suppose i will have to exchange the $1000 back into pounds sterling.
 
  • #23
Borek said:
What is christmas?

I thought it was a point on the happiness scale.
 
  • #24
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